I clear my throat. “It’s nice you came to fight your brother’s battle, but it’s over. I don’t enjoy being used.”
“Which was my fault,” he says, his lips pressing into a straight line.
I’m tempted to show him the door, but maybe my talk with Karli did some good. I can humor Sean for the next five minutes. Then I’ve got to return to my bed. It already misses me.
I siton the opposite loveseat and tuck my feet beneath me. “Go on.”
Sean tosses the remote to the couch and leans toward me. “I made the bet with Michael a couple of weeks ago when I caught him swiping right, if you know what I mean.”
“I literally don’t.”
He presses his fist to his forehead like this whole conversation pains him. “On the dating app. Anyway, you’ve gotten to know Michael. You know how passionate he is with work.”
Is passionate the word we are sticking with? “Yeah, obsessed enough to use me in order to win.” The words dry out my throat.
“No. That’s not Michael.”
“Really? So why did you make the bet then?”
He lifts a shoulder. “He’s my big brother, and I love him.”
Every word out of his mouth pleads the opposite.
Sean scrubs a hand down his face. “I’ll admit, the bet was a jerk thing to do, but I was testing him.”
Testing him?Maybe it’s a good thing I didn’t have siblings if this is the kind of crap they pull in the name of love.
Sean continues. “He’s too caught up in work, and he’s dedicated his whole life to it. I didn’t want him to miss out on what’s actually important. Since meeting you, he’s spent more time away from the shop. He delegates work to others instead of doing everything himself, and he’s been late.” He pauses at this. “He’s never late to work. The bet was only to get him to realize what he was missing. And apparently, it was you.”
Me? I helped him? No. It doesn’t matter. I refuse to care.
“Well, that’s nice and all, but he still used me.” But even as I say the words, I stop believing them.
Sean props his foot up on his opposite knee. “He fell in love with you. And I had nothing to do with that.”
I suck in a sharp breath. Love. The very thing I’ve been running from. It can’t be real. How would Sean know how Michael feels? “No, he didn’t. It was a lie to win the bet.”
I get to my feet. I need this conversation to end before I start believing in hopeless things again.
“I think you should talk to him,” Sean says, his eyes peering into my soul.
I scoff. “Why? Did you make another bet?” I no longer feel bad for laughing at his belly dancing act.
He stands. “The dude is a wreck. He’s messed up more jobs than he ever has in his life, and last night I’m pretty sure he slept in my dad’s office chair.”
There’s that knife in my stomach again. I hurt him. It’s what we Hansens do. I knew this whole thing was a mistake to begin with.
“I’m sorry.” I sniff.
Sean takes a step toward me and waits until I’m looking right at him. “Do you care about him?”
“Of course.” I rub the toe of my sock along the carpet. “But that’s all I can give him. I’m not made for love. I warned him.”
Sean's head rears back. “What a stupid thing to say. Everyone is made for love. The question is, are you ready to beloved?”
I blink. “Did you seriously just quote a pop star?”
He grins. “Sure did.”
